Bullies and Sisters
by EraseAlpha
Summary: Dave loses track of his younger sister Rose, just for a second... Strider-Lalonde Family series


Your name is Dirk Strider-Lalonde.

Your parents died in a car crash two years ago, leaving you to take custody of your three younger siblings.

You pulled through. You set everything right. Everything was alright now.

And now your oldest sister goes and fucks everything up by pretty much setting herself on the path to heartbreak.

You suppose she thought it was safe to tell you. After all, you were always each other's confidants.

She's only three years younger than you.

You realize she's been staring at you for a while and looks absolutely ruined. Shit, this must look bad, she's probably taking this the wrong way.

"I don't care if you're a lesbian or whatever."

Relief washes over her face.

"But I don't think you should tell her."

Her eyebrows shoot up and she gapes at you. Deer. Headlights.

She begins tearing up. Shit no, you hate it when she cries.

"I'm just saying, you'll probably get hurt. Come on, what are the chances whatshername-"

"Jane."

"Jane likes you back?"

She falls quiet once again and looks downwards, quietly sobbing.

"Come on Roxy…"

She shrugs and shakes her head.

"I can at least try."

"And…What? Lose her friendship if she doesn't? Having to deal with rumors for the rest of the year?"

"It's my senior year, I can-"

She quiets down and sobs again.

"What do you know." She mutters.

You feel your emotionless masquerade almost crumbling. She's crying and miserable and you're thinking of shit and you need to get your act together.

"There's this guy at work."

She raises her head a little, eyeing you curiously behind messy bangs.

"His name is, uh, Jake. He's not a very good engineer and he's always blabbing about adventures and…Point is, I like him."

You have her full attention now.

"He turned you down?"

You shake your head.

"I never asked him-"

"Well, you should."

You stare at her blankly.

"What."

"Tell Jake you love him and I'll tell Jane!"

"I don't love him, I- wait up."

Footsteps in the hall. The door creeks open and a mess of blond hair pokes in, red eye glaring beneath fuzzy brows.

"Rose wants a bedtime story."

"Then read it to her." You say blankly.

"She wants it from Roxy. If she's not drunk yet."

"I'm not. Yet."

You shake your head.

"Not now, we're having a conversation. Go back to bed."

"She's going to bug me all night."

"Go."

Dave rolls his eyes and walks out, closing the door.

You wait until you can't hear footsteps anymore.

"How about this instead? I won't confess to Jake and you don't confess to Jane and we'll save us a lot of grief."

She looks ready to burst into tears again.

But she can't hold back this time and erupts.

She falls on your lap, clutching around your waist, sobbing loudly.

You hug her with one arm (awkwardly, it's hard to hug someone who is half curled around your legs singlehandedly) and rub comforting circles on her back.

"It's alright. It'll all be okay."

"No it won't. I _love_ her, Dirk. I _need_ her."

You look down at her. She looks absolutely miserable. You sigh.

"Tell her."

She stops sobbing suddenly and you worry she's not breathing but she takes a sharp intake of air and sits back up, eyes wide open.

"Tell her." You repeat. "If anything goes wrong, _which it probably will_, you can fall back on me."

She seems to be speechless and holding her breath again and suddenly she sobs and hugs you again.

She gets up and looks at herself on a mirror, wiping the ruined makeup from her face. She turns back for a split second.

"I'll tell her tomorrow, right now I have to go tell someone a bedtime story." Her voice sounds perfectly normal. No matter how hard it was, Roxy never worried her younger siblings.

She headed for the door and stopped. Looking back, she smilled warmly.

"Tell Jake too."

"Maybe."

She looks like she never cried and walks out the door, closing it quietly, leaving you on your own.

You lay back on the futon you sleep on (because there are only two rooms) and turn the corner table lamp off.

You stare in the darkness, at the ceiling and pray to every god you ever heard of she doesn't get hurt.


End file.
